Men's Tennis Vies for Eighth Straight Win

NORMAN, Okla. -- The University of Oklahoma men's tennis team will look to claim its eighth straight victory on Friday as it hosts Texas-San Antonio at the Headington Family Tennis Center in Norman at 2 p.m. The Sooners will follow with a match against Oklahoma Baptist at 5 p.m.

On Friday, OU knocked off No. 35 Louisiana-Lafayette, 4-3, which marked the first time this season that OU has defeated a higher-ranked opponent. The win put the Sooners at No. 39 in the first computer rankings of the Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings. The highest that the team was ranked last season was No. 41.

Oklahoma has only faced UT-San Antonio once in the program's history. The last time the two teams faced each other was on March 14, 1996, when the Sooners defeated the Roadrunners, 6-1. OU has an 18-3 advantage over OBU and last faced the Bison in a doubleheader on Jan. 20, 2004. The Sooners won both contests.

Admission is free for all matches at the Headington Family Tennis Center.

Last Outing
The Sooner men's tennis team extended its winning streak to five matches with a 4-3 win over Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday in Ft. Worth, Texas. The Sooners improved to 8-3 overall with their first-ever win over the Ragin' Cajuns.

Oklahoma started off strong by winning all three doubles matches. In singles, the Sooners won at the No. 2, No. 5 and No. 6 positions. At No. 2, senior Alexei Ivanov took his match in straight sets. Senior Lee Gregg picked up a win at No. 5, while Thomas won at the No. 6 spot.

On Monday, OU faced a doubleheader against East Central and won both of the contests. The wins put the Sooners at a 10-3 overall record.

Postmatch Notes
The Sooners' win over the No. 35 Ragin' Cajuns is the first time this season that they have defeated a higher ranked team. Oklahoma was ranked 60th at the time of the match.
Sophomore Ryan Thomas retains a perfect 7-0 record in spring matches and has an impressive 8-1 overall mark.
Thomas and senior Matt Long remain undefeated at 4-0 at No. 3 doubles.
Senior Lee Gregg has won seven straight singles matches and has competed at all positions during his winning streak except No. 6.

Scouting Texas-San Antonio
With a 2-6 record, UT-San Antonio is coming off of a 5-0 win over Texas Pan-American. The Roadrunners' other victory came on Feb. 19 when they defeated Nicholls State, 5-2. Slated to play at No. 1 singles for Texas-San Antonio is freshman Andre Moreira, who has posted a 3-3 spring record. Moreira will likely pair with senior Hetori Chaves for No. 1 doubles.

Scouting Oklahoma Baptist
The OBU Bison are 4-3 on the season after defeating Oklahoma Christian in competition on March 7. The Sooners have an 18-3 record over OBU and last faced the Bison in a double-header on Jan. 20, 2004.

Sooners in the Rankings
Junior Marek Velicka fell to No. 74 in singles in the latest Fila Collegiate Tennis Rankings released by the ITA. Velicka, who previously appeared in the polls at the No. 22 spot, has tallied an 11-4 mark in spring matches. Velicka also ranks in doubles with senior Alexei Ivanov. The tandem, which has posted a 9-4 overall record this year, fell eight spots to No. 28.

Oklahoma is at No. 39 with the release of the first computer rankings of the season.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Men's Tennis Vies for Eighth Straight Win

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